A/N: This story contains dark themes. Proceed with caution. I am not affiliated with Scott Cawthon, or the FNaF franchise. Reviews are welcome.

[Original Title: Strings, Masks and Chains]

...

Charlotte

Given name of French origin

Means "Free Man" or "Petite"

Gabriel

Given name of Hebrew origin

Means "A Hero of God"

She could still recall them. Those moments.

Despite how almost a decade had passed since then, Charlotte's final moments hadn't faded from her mind, and neither did the emotions that accompanied them.

She didn't think she'd ever forget the helplessness and the fear, the cold and the rain. The rain…

From that day on, rain had become her least favorite weather. A shame, too, because she remembered liking it a lot back when she was a child. Splashing on the puddles, smelling the wet ground, looking out for rainbows… fuzzy though they may have been, those were some of her cherished memories.

But now, there were no puddles to splash on, nor any wet ground to smell, nor any rainbows in sight. It was raining, and she was left with nothing but the sound of water droplets striking the roof like a barrage of bullets, and the agonizing memory of her death.

On nights like these, Charlotte would isolate herself from her friends, and sit within the confines of her large gift box until the rain would stop. If anyone would approach her, she would politely drive them away. She had taken it upon herself to act as a leader of sorts, someone who was strong and reliable, whom the others could trust. Hence why she didn't want to add to their burdens.

All she could do now was lie down, and maybe try and get some sleep.

"I bet you weren't-t expecting me to show up-p, were you now?

The volume of the voice when compared to the silence of her surroundings was enough to make her flinch. She didn't even have to peek outside her box to know that it belonged to Freddy. How absorbed in her own mind must she have been that she didn't hear him coming?

"What do you want?" she asked, irritation subtly tinting her voice.

"...I'm sorry-y. I just wanted-d to see how you were doing," Freddy, or rather Gabriel eventually said.

Charlotte listened closely, so as to understand his words through the static of the animatronic's voice box.

She and Cassidy were lucky to be able to talk freely with their own voices. The rest of them were stuck having to rearrange the limited prerecorded lines they had in order to form sentences. Since she and Cassidy didn't have any, they weren't restricted by them.

Unfortunately, this meant that understanding what the others were trying to say wasn't always easy. Even so, after years of experience, Charlotte had gotten used to it. Still, she wished to one day hear what the others' voices were like.

"I'm fine… Thank you for asking," she replied. The Puppet then parted the flaps of her gift box, and raised her head. Her eyes met Freddy's, which in the darkness of the kitchen looked like glowing white pinpricks. That and the fact that he was leaning over her made him look a little frightening, despite the fact that she was a few inches taller than him.

"How are you and the others?"

"…Same old-d. Susie is trying to draw, while Fritz and Jeremy are arguing-g over whether Godzilla can beat one million lions."

"Hm…Truly a subject of the utmost importance," Charlotte said in an exaggerated English accent. Freddy let out a deep laugh.

…

This was one of the few nights where the company had no night guard stationed. Management simply couldn't keep up with the rate at which those working the night shift were quitting.

While this meant that revenge continued to elude the unfortunate victims of the 'Missing Children Incident', it at least offered them some much needed respite. A time to unwind. Charlotte was glad to see all of them get along with each other.

That said, there was one person she couldn't help but worry about, even if it was just a little.

"Hey, uh… How's Cassidy doing? Did any of you talk to her?"

Freddy remained silent at first.

"We talked-d a little, but… you know how she is. I don't-t think-k she likes me much."

Charlotte was disappointed, but not surprised. A while back, Gabriel and Cassidy got into a rather heated argument, one which upset the balance of the entire group.

While Charlotte had helped mend the bond between them, Cassidy began isolating herself more and more. It was upsetting, yet there wasn't much anyone could really do about it.

"I'm sure she doesn't mean anything bad by it…"

Everyone had their own methods of dealing with their struggles. Jeremy would try and laugh it off. Fritz would look on the bright side of things. Susie would try and recreate some of her old hobbies to keep her old life fresh in her mind. Gabriel would try to help those around him. That's usually how things went, and they all showed understanding to one another for that. If Cassidy wanted to be by herself, they'd let her be. No matter how sad it seemed to Charlotte…

…

"What's wrong-g?" Gabriel suddenly asked. He didn't know exactly why, but he could tell something was off.

Charlotte wasn't sure what to do or say to that. This would usually be when she'd say she's fine, and tell the others to leave her be for now. One side of her wanted to be honest and share her true thoughts, yet the other, more hardened one ordered her to retain her composure.

"I'm-"

The roar of thunder cut her off, causing her to tense up.

"It's the rain…" she blurted, without thinking twice. She had his undivided attention at that moment, and she knew he was going to ask. It was too late to back out now.

"It was raining… when I died."

Freddy nodded quietly, while she said nothing else. In truth, this was a topic Charlotte would rarely talk about outside of a few brief mentions.

Gabriel wasn't sure if prying was a good idea, regardless of how curious he was. Perhaps she had her reasons for keeping everyone in the dark.

Even so, he couldn't help but think that maybe she needed some encouragement to open up. He considered her his friend - probably his closest friend. She would always lend an ear to the others. What's the worst that could happen by returning the favor?

"You can tell me anything-g."

"..."

It would be so simple to stay quiet, and just drop the subject altogether. To just let it go. And yet… Charlotte couldn't do it. She took the offer, despite her better judgment.

"...That night… there was a birthday party, and the whole class was invited. It was magical, you know? Everyone just seemed so happy. The band was singing…and Freddy delivered the cake to us.

A group of kids got close to me, and said they needed something. I don't remember what it was, but I went outside to get it from my father's car.

When I got back, the door was locked, and I started panicking. I didn't want to be alone in the rain… The other children saw me, and started laughing at me.

I guess this was just a prank of theirs, but…"

"..."

This was the extent to which Gabriel and the others knew Charlotte's story. That mindless prank had left her vulnerable, and the murderer greedily took advantage of that. Although that much was true, there was still an aspect of that moment that Charlotte hadn't revealed to anyone, until then.

"I heard a car pull over a little farther away, but I didn't really look at it. After a while, I felt a hand on my shoulder and it terrified me. I looked up, and there he was. William Afton."

She laughed emptily.

"Can you believe I actually felt relief then?"

Freddy's head turned, until the two locked eyes. He didn't say anything, though.

"The truth is…" Charlotte continued, looking away, "William was a good friend of my father's. Our families were very close, and I used to play with his kids every once in a while. So… he was like an uncle to me, in a way…"

"..."

"Well… There was always something off about him, though. I couldn't explain it, but every time I'd look at him, I'd get this strange feeling. It was like… like his smiles were fake. It always made me feel uncomfortable. But I was still happy to see him then, you know? I thought he was going to help me.

I explained to him what happened, and he seemed sad. Yeah, I remember. He bent down and wiped the tears off my eyes. He told me there was another entrance somewhere on the side of the building, so… I… I followed him."

Gabriel noticed how strained her voice was getting.

"He… He…"

At that moment, every sensation returned to the forefront of her mind. It was as though she could feel every punch and every push. The stab wound on her chest burned as if it had just now been opened. She remembered the disgusting taste of iron. She struggled to speak, to scream, and even to breathe, as the rain drowned out her words, and the cold overtook her.

"You know… the rest… I… I never thought… I would be right… about-"

Gabriel was left staring wide eyed, as no words managed to form in his mind. Emotions were wriggling and churning within him, like a tangle of worms. Anger was the one that managed to overpower the rest, however.

That man…was he even human, he wondered? Not only had he stripped the lives of so many innocent children, he also showed no mercy to a girl who considered him family. A girl who trusted him.

He'd make sure of it. One day, that man was going to feel every ounce of pain he had inflicted on others. He was going to learn how it feels to have to sing the same stupid songs for years on end, with a voice that isn't yours, with a name that's not yours, and without anybody out there to care enough to look for you.

A quiet sob doused his burning rage, which was followed by another, and then by another. They were coming from Charlotte, no matter how surreal the idea seemed. It was like she was trying to be as quiet as possible, so as to not be heard.

She had always been strong and supportive. She had given them life, and stuck by them when they needed it. Hence why it seemed so wrong to see her broken like this.

Gabriel mulled over that thought for a bit. No, perhaps it wasn't unbelievable like he had made it out to be. He had nearly forgotten, but at the end of the day, Charlotte was still just a child, as lost and confused as the rest of them.

In a way, it was almost amazing how even with all that she'd been through, she could still generally retain her jovial demeanor.

He thought of all the wonderful things she'd do; the things that made her who she was.

When Susie would get sad, Charlotte would have girl talks with her to cheer her up. She'd make puns to lift Jeremy's spirits when he'd get angry. She'd keep Fritz company whenever the rest of them would fight. And there was also this habit of hers. When she'd think there was no one else around, she'd reorganize the plush toys in the Prize Corner, singing in that pretty voice of hers all the while.

…

Revenge could wait. For now, Gabriel simply had to be there for her, like she had been for him. But how was he to do that? He didn't know what he should say that would make things better.

…

He then remembered something. Back in 1987, when the animatronics had been relocated to that new pizzeria, the Puppet was given a music box that would restrain her to the Prize Corner.

Although this meant that Charlotte was separated from the others, they still visited her once. He remembered how she had told them that at the very least, she liked the way music boxes sound. Something about the song 'My Grandfather's Clock' made her feel like home.

That music box was long since gone, so Gabriel would have to improvise. He wasn't sure if it was a good idea, but he couldn't just do nothing. As gently as he could, he stood upright, and activated Freddy's internal music box.

The Toreador March began playing, and Gabriel could see the Puppet through Freddy's sockets gradually stop sobbing. Eventually, she looked up into his glowing blue eyes, still shaking.

As the classical song played out, Gabriel took note of the Puppet's smooth mask. It was always so enigmatic, like every emotion was crammed into a single expression. Joy. Sadness. Anger. He hadn't realized until then, but it was beautiful. Not to mention fitting, too, because Gabriel had no clue if what he was doing was working or not. Sure, she had stopped crying, but Charlotte's thoughts and feelings were but a mystery to him.

Not too long after, the last few notes dissipated. Silence ensued. Charlotte sniffled, before speaking quietly. Her voice was still a little strained, he noticed.

"Gabriel… Please, come closer."

Naturally, the request weirded the boy out a bit, but he complied nonetheless. He lowered his head.

"Closer."

This time, he bent his knees slightly.

"Closer."

At this point, Gabriel had no idea why she was telling him to do this; he could see and hear her perfectly fine. Regardless, he bent his back in order to almost reach her.

*Honk*

In a swift motion, the Puppet's slim index finger pushed Freddy's nose. Charlotte began giggling sweetly like a chime, much to Gabriel's surprise.

Once her fit was over, she said, "You're really sweet, you know that?"

"..."

"...Thank you. I feel a little better now."

"...You're welcome, Ch-Charlotte. I'm glad I could help-p," he added, relieved. She laughed again.

"Please, call me Charlie. It's how every person I was close to used to call me. I'd like to think we're close, too, aren't we?"

Gabriel savored the fuzziness he felt from hearing that.

"Ha ha, of course w-we are, Charlie!"

Neither of them said anything else after that, for words were unnecessary. The Puppet let her head rest on Freddy's shoulder, while he wrapped an arm around her.

Charlotte sunk into the moment. She took everything in.

She could hear the distant sound of Foxy's voice, as Fritz was trying to explain to Jeremy that one million was simply too big a number for even Godzilla to handle. She heard Bonnie retorting, saying something along the lines of Godzilla being able to take on even a billion lions if he had to. She then faintly heard Susie telling them to keep quiet, for she was trying to focus on her drawing.

Charlotte shifted her attention elsewhere. There was a subtle white noise that permeated the building. It sounded like the humming of idle machinery. Part of it was coming from Freddy, as well. It was comforting.

However, perhaps the most prominent sound of all, was the gentle pitter patter of the rain, as it softly landed on the windows and the roof, like a pianist tapping the keys of their instrument.

THE END

Thank you for reading!